Singapore SME Compliance Calendar 2026: Every Deadline You Can't Miss

Running a Singapore Pte Ltd means dealing with three agencies that don't talk to each other. IRAS wants your corporate tax by 30 November. ACRA wants your annual return within 7 months of your financial year end. CPF wants its contributions by the 14th of every month.

Miss one and the penalties show up fast. S$300 on ACRA after 3 months. S$200 a month on GST, capped at S$10,000 per return. 1.5% per month on CPF arrears.

This is your full compliance calendar for 2026. Every deadline you can't miss, what it's for, what happens if you skip it, and where to find the IRAS, ACRA, MOM, and CPF source pages. We've assumed a 31 December financial year end for the worked examples. If yours is different, every deadline shifts accordingly.

The vocabulary you need

A few terms that trip up new founders:

• Financial year (FY): your accounting period. Most Singapore SMEs run 1 Jan to 31 Dec, but you can pick any 12-month period.
• Financial year end (FYE): the last day of your FY (e.g. 31 December).
• Year of Assessment (YA): the tax year for the financial year ending in the prior calendar year. FY 1 Jan–31 Dec 2025 → YA 2026 corporate tax.
• ECI: Estimated Chargeable Income, an early estimate of taxable profit.
• Form C-S / C-S Lite / C: the corporate income tax return forms.
• F5: the quarterly GST return.
• IR8A: the annual employee income return.
• IR21: the tax clearance form filed when a foreign employee leaves.
• AR: the annual return filed with ACRA.
• AGM: the annual general meeting (or its dispensed-with equivalent).
• XBRL: the digital format for filing financial statements with ACRA.

The compliance calendar at a glance

For a Singapore Pte Ltd with 31 December FYE:

Deadline	What	Where
14th of every month	CPF, SDL, Foreign Worker Levy	CPF Board / SkillsFuture SG / MOM
15th of the 2nd month after payment	Withholding tax to non-residents	IRAS
1 month after end of GST period (quarterly)	GST F5	IRAS
30 days before foreign employee departure	IR21 tax clearance	IRAS
1 March	IR8A / Auto-Inclusion Scheme (AIS)	IRAS
31 March (3 months after FYE)	ECI (unless waiver applies)	IRAS
30 June (6 months after FYE)	AGM (or dispense with via resolution)	ACRA
31 July (7 months after FYE)	Annual Return + XBRL financial statements	ACRA
30 November	Form C-S / C-S Lite / C corporate tax	IRAS
Within 14 days of change	Director / secretary / address changes	ACRA

All deadlines except 30 November (corporate tax) shift with your FYE. The corporate tax deadline is fixed at 30 November of the YA, regardless of when your FY ends.

If your FYE isn't 31 December

The following table maps the relative deadlines to common non-December FYEs:

FYE	ECI due (3 months)	AGM due (6 months)	AR due (7 months)
31 March	30 June	30 September	31 October
30 June	30 September	31 December	31 January (following year)
30 September	31 December	31 March (following year)	30 April (following year)
31 December	31 March (following year)	30 June (following year)	31 July (following year)

The 30 November corporate tax deadline is keyed to YA, not FYE. FY ending in 2025 = YA 2026, filing due 30 November 2026.

Month-by-month walkthrough (31 December FYE)

Every month

• CPF contributions for SC and PR staff, due 14th of the following month. Late payment interest is 1.5% per month, minimum S$5 (CPF late payment).
• Skills Development Levy (SDL), paid with CPF. 0.25% of each employee's monthly wages, minimum S$2, maximum S$11.25 per employee (Skills Development Levy).
• Foreign Worker Levy for S Pass and Work Permit holders, paid monthly (MOM Foreign Worker Levy).
• Withholding tax on payments to non-residents, due the 15th of the second month after payment (IRAS withholding tax).

January

GST F5 for the October–December quarter is due 31 January if your GST periods follow calendar quarters.

February

Final stretch on IR8A preparation. If you participate in the Auto-Inclusion Scheme (AIS), the e-submission window opens.

March

• 1 March: IR8A / AIS deadline. Employers must provide IR8A (and IR8S, Appendix 8A/8B where relevant) to employees for the prior calendar year, or e-submit via AIS (IRAS AIS). AIS is mandatory for employers with 5 or more employees and has expanded over time to other categories; check the IRAS page for the current scope. Our IR8A guide walks through the mechanics.
• 31 March: ECI for 31 Dec FYE. File estimated chargeable income within 3 months of FYE unless you qualify for the waiver (IRAS ECI. The waiver applies if both conditions are met: annual revenue not more than S$5 million AND ECI is nil. Profitable companies under S$5M still must file. See our ECI filing guide for the full breakdown.

April

GST F5 for the January–March quarter is due 30 April. Use this period to start collating supporting documentation for ECI if you haven't filed it.

May

IRAS sends corporate income tax filing notifications (Form C-S / C-S Lite / C) to all active companies. Confirm your form type before drafting.

June

• 30 June: AGM deadline for 31 Dec FYE companies. AGM must be held within 6 months of FYE unless dispensed with by written resolution (ACRA AGM. Dispensing with AGM doesn't remove the obligation to prepare financial statements and send them to members.

July

• 31 July: Annual Return + XBRL FS for 31 Dec FYE companies. File via BizFile+ within 7 months of FYE (ACRA AR deadlines). The AR includes financial statements, typically in XBRL format. Late filing penalties: S$300 if within 3 months late, S$600 if more than 3 months late (ACRA penalties.

GST F5 for April–June quarter is also due 31 July.

August

A quiet month for most SMEs with 31 Dec FYE, once AGM, AR, and ECI are filed. Use the period to prepare the corporate tax return.

September

GST F5 for July–September is due 31 October, so start collating Q3 GST workings.

October

GST F5 for Q3 (Jul–Sep) due 31 October.

November

• 30 November: Corporate income tax return. Form C-S, C-S (Lite), or C, e-filing only (IRAS Form C-S / C. The deadline is 30 November of the YA, irrespective of your FYE. Late filing brings penalties, estimated assessments (usually higher than your actual liability), and enforcement action.

December

• 31 December: AIS registration for new employers with 5 or more employees. Register by 31 Dec to be in AIS for that calendar year's reporting.
• GST F5 for Oct–Dec quarter is due 31 January.

Do you need to register for GST?

The compliance calendar above assumes you're GST-registered. If you're not, the GST F5 row drops out.

GST registration becomes mandatory once:

• Your taxable turnover in the past 12 months exceeded S$1 million (retrospective test), or
• You reasonably expect taxable turnover in the next 12 months to exceed S$1 million (prospective test).

Both tests apply continuously. Register within 30 days of becoming liable. Late registration brings a penalty and back-dated GST collection on supplies already made.

Many SMEs register voluntarily before hitting the threshold to claim input tax on equipment, software, or premises. Our voluntary GST registration guide covers when it makes sense.

InvoiceNow and GST e-invoicing

IRAS is rolling out the InvoiceNow-GST link in stages:

• From 1 November 2025: newly incorporated companies that voluntarily register for GST within 6 months of incorporation
• From 1 April 2026: all new voluntary GST registrants, regardless of incorporation date
• From 1 April 2028 to 1 April 2031: staged extension to all existing GST-registered businesses, with full coverage by April 2031

If you're approaching GST registration, plan for an InvoiceNow-compatible invoicing platform from day one. If you're already registered, the 2028–2031 window gives you time to migrate, but don't leave it to the last quarter.

ECI: the waiver and the trap

The ECI waiver catches a lot of founders. The conditions are clear, but missed often:

You qualify for the waiver only if both apply for the YA:

1. Annual revenue is not more than S$5 million, AND
2. ECI is nil.

If you are profitable, even with revenue under S$5M, you must file ECI within 3 months of FYE. If you have over S$5M revenue, you must file regardless of profit. Skipping the filing because "we're small" is a common mistake that triggers IRAS attention.

Filing ECI also unlocks more GIRO instalments on your corporate tax payment. File ECI within 1 month of FYE and you can get up to 10 monthly instalments. File later and the number of instalments drops. File after 26 March (for 31 December FYE) and you may have to pay the corporate tax in fewer instalments or as a lump sum when the assessment is raised. Check the current IRAS instalment policy when planning your tax cash flow.

Which corporate tax form?

IRAS provides three corporate income tax forms IRAS Form C-S / C:

• Form C-S (Lite): revenue not more than S$200,000, simple tax position. The shortest return.
• Form C-S: revenue not more than S$5 million, only Singapore-sourced income taxable at the prevailing rate, no foreign tax credit, group relief, or other complex claims.
• Form C: anyone who doesn't qualify for C-S, typically over S$5M revenue or with complex matters (foreign income, group relief, special claims).

If you outgrow Form C-S, the change to Form C requires more supporting schedules and disclosures. Plan ahead if you're approaching the S$5M threshold.

XBRL: what to file and how

ACRA requires most Singapore-incorporated companies to file financial statements with their Annual Return in XBRL format (ACRA FS requirements.

The two main templates:

• Full XBRL: detailed tagging of balance sheet, P&L, cash flow, equity, and notes. Most normal trading companies use this.
• Simplified XBRL: fewer tags for smaller, less complex companies.

A small number of entities are exempt or use different formats:

• Regulated financial institutions (banks, insurers) follow different rules.
• Companies allowed to use non-SFRS/IFRS standards have specific carve-outs.
• Dormant relevant companies may have simplified obligations.

The exemption rules have tightened over time; always check the current ACRA page before assuming an exemption applies.

XBRL FS is filed together with the Annual Return. There's no separate XBRL-only deadline for non-listed private companies. Listed companies have shorter timelines.

Penalty summary

For quick reference, the headline penalty exposures:

Filing missed	Penalty
ACRA Annual Return (≤ 3 months late)	S$300
ACRA Annual Return (> 3 months late)	S$600 + possible director prosecution
GST F5 (late filing)	S$200 immediately + S$200/month, capped S$10,000 per return
GST payment (late)	5% + 2%/month, capped at 50% of tax
Withholding tax (late)	5% + 1%/month, max additional 15%
CPF (late payment)	1.5%/month (min S$5) + possible composition fine
Form C-S / C (late)	Estimated assessment + late filing penalty (varies with tax owed)
IR8A (late)	Composition fine + employee assessment complications

Repeated non-compliance can lead to director prosecution and, in extreme cases, striking off the company.

Audit, small company, and what changes once you're big

Most Singapore SMEs qualify for audit exemption under the small company test: private company, meeting two of three criteria (revenue not more than S$10M, assets not more than S$10M, fewer than 50 employees) for the immediate past two consecutive financial years.

Once you exceed the test, you'll need:

• A statutory audit each year
• Audited financial statements filed with your AR
• Auditor appointment and rotation considerations

The compliance calendar doesn't change, but the work behind each item (especially AGM and AR) gets more involved.

Event-driven filings (not annual)

These are not on the calendar but trigger their own deadlines:

• Change of director or company secretary: notify ACRA via BizFile+ within 14 days
• Change of registered office address: file via BizFile+ within 14 days
• Allotment of new shares: file return of allotment within 14 days
• Strike-off application: separate process via BizFile+
• GST registration: within 30 days of becoming liable

The 14-day windows are short. Set up a reminder process for any company change, not just the annual deadlines.

FAQ

What's the difference between FYE and YA?

FYE is your financial year end (e.g. 31 December 2025). YA is the year of assessment for that financial year, named after the year following FYE (YA 2026 covers FY ending 2025). All ACRA filings are timed off FYE. The corporate tax return is filed by 30 November of the YA, regardless of when FYE falls.

Do I have to file ECI if my company is small?

Yes, unless both conditions for the waiver are met: annual revenue not more than S$5 million AND ECI is nil. Profitable companies under S$5M revenue must still file ECI within 3 months of FYE.

Which corporate tax form should I use?

Form C-S (Lite) for revenue not more than S$200,000 with a simple tax position. Form C-S for revenue not more than S$5 million with only Singapore-sourced income at the standard rate and no complex claims. Form C otherwise.

When is XBRL due?

With your Annual Return. For non-listed private companies, that's within 7 months of FYE. Most companies file XBRL FS as part of the AR submission.

Can I dispense with AGM?

Yes, private companies can dispense with AGM via written resolution. You still need to prepare financial statements, send them to members within 5 months of FYE, and file the Annual Return on time.

What happens if I miss the 30 November corporate tax deadline?

IRAS may issue an estimated assessment (often higher than your actual tax) and impose a late filing penalty. Persistent non-filing escalates to enforcement, including garnishee orders on your bank.

How much is the late penalty for the Annual Return?

S$300 if filed within 3 months of the deadline. S$600 if more than 3 months late. Persistent default can lead to director prosecution and striking off (ACRA penalties).

Do I need to file anything if my company is dormant?

Yes. Dormant companies still file an Annual Return with ACRA, may need to file Form C with IRAS (and Form C-S/Lite/C if a tax return is required), and remain subject to standard ACRA event-driven filings. Our dormant company guide covers the specifics.

How Harvest helps

We run the compliance calendar for SMEs across Singapore so you don't have to track it. For every client, we maintain a master timeline keyed to their FYE, file every return on time, and flag the upcoming deadlines two weeks ahead.

As Charissa Guan at bSide Agency said about working with us, "Nothing has ever been late." That's the point. The penalties above don't apply to clients who outsource compliance to a firm that takes it seriously.

Book a free consultation with Harvest. We'll map your specific FYE, review what's outstanding, and lay out the next 12 months of deadlines so nothing falls through the cracks.